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Astro-Science Workshop

Explore the Near-space Environment

The Astro-Science Workshop (ASW) is a challenging program designed for high school sophomores and juniors in the Chicago area who have demonstrated exceptional interest and aptitude in science.

Sponsored by the Adler Planetarium and the National Science Foundation, the ASW originated over 40 years ago during the space race and Apollo program.

Created to encourage students to pursue careers in science, today it fulfills this goal by offering students the unique opportunity to work hands-on with scientific instruments and research-quality data.

About the Workshop

Curriculum

"When I was in high school, I had a thirst for more science, more than high school could offer me, and I was lucky enough to be selected into the Adler Planetarium's Astro-Science Workshop... I think it was on that platform that I got here at the Adler that allowed me to go to college and graduate school and become a professional astronomer." John Grunsfeld, Ph.D., ASW '76 NASA Astronaut

The central organizing theme of the ASW is hands-on, team-based, scientific exploration. In past workshops, students explored the near-space environment by building and sending experiments to altitudes of around 100,000 feet - the very edge of space.

Join us to build and launch scientific instruments to the edge of space on high-altitude balloons with some of the finest astronomers and scientists worldwide. By the end of the workshop, enjoy friendships with other Chicago-area high school students

The remainder of the program will be focused on the design and construction of experimental sensors to measure various properties of the Earth's atmosphere, including the light and radiation environment, culminating in the third week with the launch, chase, and recovery of these experiments on board a high-altitude balloon.